1. Field
A sterilization and deodorization apparatus is disclosed herein.
2. Background
In recent years, introduction of external gas into buildings may be minimized to reduce energy consumption. Accordingly, due to air-tight buildings, indoor air pollution in the buildings is becoming more serious. As a result, various kinds of judiciary regulations with respect to indoor pollutants are being increasingly enforced.
While home appliances installed in homes or companies operate, indoor pollutants may be generated and deposited within the home appliances or discharged from the home appliances. The indoor pollutants may cause an unpleasant smell and have a bad impact on a user's health.
For example, in a case of home appliances using air containing moisture or water, such as air conditioners, dehumidifiers, air cleaners, refrigerators, or washing machines, pollution due to dust or microorganisms inside or outside the home appliances may occur. In detail, the Indoor pollutants may be classified into (1) particle pollutants, such as fine dust, and asbestos, for example, (2) gas pollutants, such as voltaic organic compounds (VOCs), and (3) biological pollutants, such as viruses, and molds, for example.
To remove the indoor pollutants, surface discharge induced plasma chemical processing may be used. In general, the surface discharge induced plasma chemical processing may be understood as or refer to a process in which a strong plasma region is formed on a surface of a device through high frequency discharging using ceramic to generate a large amount of OH radicals and ozone, thereby removing the pollutants using the generated radicals and ozone.
The present Applicant has filed an application (hereinafter, referred to as a “related art”) with respect to the above-described technology, Korean Patent Registration No. 10-0657476, entitled “Surface Discharge Induced Air Purifier” and registered on Dec. 7, 2006, which is hereby incorporated by reference. The air purifier according to the related art includes a plasma electrode device including a discharge electrode disposed on a top surface of two sheets of insulating dielectrics, which are attached to each other, a ground electrode disposed between the two sheets of insulating dielectrics, and a coating layer that shields the discharge electrode to prevent the discharge electrode from being directly exposed to air.
However, in the air purifier according to the related art, as ozone is generated as a result of the reaction, it may be necessary to satisfy mandatory controls with respect to the ozone, and also, pernicious influences on the human body may occur due to the ozone.